The present invention relates to a processing station for a processing line, having a module platform and a plurality of withdrawable modules that can be introduced into it, and the processing station has a transporting device for transporting workpieces to be processed at the processing station.
Such processing stations are known for instance from German Patent Disclosures DE 197 29 369 A1 and DE 197 41 671 A1. In these known processing stations, a transporting device that can convey workpieces over the full width of the module platform is solidly connected to the module platform. In the module platform, so-called drawer receptacles are provided, into which withdrawable modules, called “process modules”, can be introduced. Identical processing stations are lined up with one another to make a processing line.
The known withdrawable modules include at least control housings, which are required for controlling individually components, such as processing and handling devices. However, they can also themselves include the aforementioned devices.
Because of the modular construction of the known processing stations, relatively fast conversion of a processing station from one processing task to another is possible. The term “processing task” means even purely handling operations, with which only a change of position or orientation of workpieces is associated, but not a change of material and/or form or the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,491 A is also noted.
A disadvantage of the known processing stations of this generic type is the calibration effort and expense in conversion from one processing task to another, since the new withdrawable module, with the devices optionally provided on it, after being introduced into the module platform has to be aligned with the transporting device, solidly joined to the module platform, and calibrated, since it must be assured that for the processing, the workpieces are located at a well-defined location, where automated processing and/or handling can be done with sufficiently great precision.